Of all Protestant churches, the Anglican Church (known in America as the Episcopal Church) has historically had the deepest relationship with the Virgin Mary. This is because the Anglican Church was not founded primarily for theological reasons but because of practical concerns related to the English king of the sixteenth century, King Henry VIII, who reigned from 1509 to 1547. In his quest for a male heir to take over the throne after his death, Henry VIII sought the permission of the Roman Church to divorce his wife so that he could marry again.

When the Pope would not grant King Henry the divorce he requested, Thomas Cranmer, the king's ally, was appointed as Archbishop of Canterbury (the seat of highest authority in the Anglican Church), and immediately allowed the divorce. Because Pope Clement VII did not approve of the divorce or of King Henry's flagrant disobedience, he excommunicated him. King Henry's response to the Pope's act of excommunication was to remove England from the control of the Roman Catholic Church and to start the Church of England (called the Anglican Church).

Although the new Anglican Church embraced some aspects of the newly forming Protestant theology, the Church of England retained many of the forms and devotions of the Roman Catholic Church. King Henry never really intended to have a clean break from Rome; he had the short-term goal of attaining the freedom to do as he chose in regards to divorce.

In one of the most wrenching ironies of history, Henry VIII was never successful in producing a male heir who could be king. Despite his efforts with six wives, Henry only had one son, Edward VI, who was sickly and died when he was just fifteen years old. Still, the difficulties surrounding Henry's quest for a male heir had a profound impact on the history of England and the history of Christianity.

The Act of Supremacy

In 1534, King Henry VIII established The Act of Supremacy. Under this act, the Church in England was placed squarely under the authority of the king. Under King Henry VIII, who was quite conservative, the Church retained many of the liturgical practices and piety of the Roman Catholic Church, while mixing in some Protestant sentiment for good measure. During this time, Thomas Cranmer wrote The Book of Common Prayer, which contained specific articles of faith. During the early era of Anglicanism, the Church demonstrated varying degrees of warmth toward the Virgin Mary.

On August 15, the day on which the Roman Catholics celebrate the Assumption and the Eastern Orthodox Celebrate the Dormition (or falling asleep of Mary), the Anglicans also remember this event by praying, “O God, who hast taken to thyself the blessed Virgin Mary, mother of thy incarnate Son: Grant that we, who have been redeemed of his blood, may share with her the glory of thine eternal Kingdom; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.”

One of the chief distinctions between the Anglican Church and the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches, however, is that although the Anglican Church heartily embraced the idea that the saints in heaven continue to pray for those on earth, from very early on, the Anglican Church expressed reservations about asking for the prayers of the saints. Although the Anglican Church retained much of the forms, calendar, and piety of the Roman Catholic Church, it had a strong desire to separate itself from some of the perceived “excesses” of the Roman Catholic Church.

Contemporary Anglicanism

In contemporary times, there are pockets of devotion to the Virgin Mary within the Anglican Church. Historically, the more robust Marian devotion that remained under Henry VIII gradually gave way to a more subtle Mariology, but Mary still has a position of esteem within the Anglican Church. Many Anglican chapels have been devoted to her, and she still occupies a place within their calendar.

In 1931, a Society of Mary was formed within the Anglican Church. This group describes itself as “Episcopalians dedicated to the Glory of God and the Holy Incarnation of Christ, under the invocation of Our Lady, Help of Christians.” This group exists with the desire to promote devotion to the Virgin Mary within the Episcopalian context, although its membership is not limited to Episcopalians.

Within the Anglican Church, there are six major feasts of the Virgin Mary. Many of these feasts are not celebrated in all parishes, but they exist in the richness of the liturgical calendar. Depending on the spiritual emphasis of each individual parish, these services may or may not be celebrated.

The Major Feasts of the Virgin Mary in the Anglican Church

The Seattle Statement

Historically, there has been enough common belief surrounding the Virgin Mary between the Roman Catholics and the Anglicans that in 2005, a statement called Mary, Grace and Hope in Christ (often referred to as the Seattle Statement) was formally presented. This statement was the fruit of many years of dialogue between a small group of Anglicans and Roman Catholics who sought to find common ground between the two churches in relation to the Virgin Mary.

The Seattle Statement offers an interesting glimpse into the fruits of ecumenical discussions surrounding the Virgin Mary, although this statement is not generally viewed as authoritative because it has not yet garnered universal approval within these churches. Instead, it is seen as a starting place for discussion on an issue that has at times been divisive.

This statement affirms the positions that the two churches hold in common in relation to Mary. In particular, it says that it is theologically acceptable for both Anglicans and Roman Catholics to pray to the Virgin Mary. It also states that the Roman Catholic dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption can be viewed as consistent with Anglican methods of Biblical interpretation. On the Roman Catholic side, admissions are made that there have been some “past excesses” related to the Virgin Mary. Although they may not be explicitly opposed to the dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption, Anglicans were primarily concerned with the way these dogmas came about — through Papal pronouncements instead of through a more organic kind of consensus. This issue was a major sticking point between the two churches. In another statement that was released in 1981, the Anglicans expressed deep concerns about a dogma that is binding to all believers and is proclaimed on the basis of papal authority.

In 2002 the current Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, published a beautiful book about praying with icons of the Virgin Mary and infant Christ titled Ponder These Things. In this book, he expresses a classic Christian position on the relationship between Christ and Mary. “It is not only that we cannot understand Mary without seeing her as pointing to Christ: we cannot understand Christ without seeing his attention to Mary,” he writes, continuing, “Jesus does not appear to us as a solitary monarch, enthroned afar off, but as someone whose being and loving is always engaged, already directed toward humanity.”